• Defence Helicopter

  Argentina orders Bell 407s for military search and rescue missions

  6th June 2023

  Argentina is to acquire six Bell 407 helicopters for search and rescue operations by the country's army and air force under a government-to-government contract with Canada.

• Defence Notes

  Boom time has arrived for South Korean defence exports (Opinion)

  9th October 2023

  The Asian country to make the most spectacular and stellar success in terms of arms exports is none other than South Korea, a nation of 51.7 million citizens.

• Land Warfare

  Germany, Netherlands place €1.9 billion order for Caracal airmobile vehicles

  11th July 2023

  Germany and the Netherlands have signed a contract with Rheinmetall for the supply of Caracal airmobile platforms, worth €1.9 billion.

• Naval Warfare

  Insight: How rising tensions have fuelled the Type 26 frigate's development

  12th September 2023

  Slated to enter service in the late 2020s, the Type 26 frigate addresses the pressing need for enhanced ASW capabilities, particularly in light of heightened tensions with Russia. Shephard Defence Insight analyses the design and its equipment fit.

• Air Warfare

  Boeing joins Airbus team in bid for UK New Medium Helicopter

  6th March 2023

  Boeing has teamed up with the Airbus-led H175M Task Force in the $1.15bn New Medium Helicopter programme bid to replace the UK armed forces' ageing Puma fleet from 2025.

• Defence Helicopter

  CH-47F Chinook Block II reaches final assembly line as wider programme moves forward

  26th May 2023

  The Block II upgrade incorporates various enhancements to increase lift capability and commonality between US Army and allied fleets, reducing maintenance costs.

• Training

  Royal Air Force Typhoon fighters return to Eastern Europe after exercises

  5th June 2023

  RAF Typhoon fighter jets have recently returned to Estonia, resuming their duty of patrolling the airspace along NATO's Eastern border.

• Training

  Leonardo expands Italian aircraft maintenance training capability

  19th May 2023

  Leonardo has been granted new certification allowing it perform a full spectrum of military aviation maintenance training services.

• Uncrewed Vehicles

  Eurodrone gets Liebherr landing gear

  25th April 2023

  Airbus has chosen Liebherr-Aerospace Lindenberg GmbH to supply the landing gear and hydraulic system for the medium-altitude, long-endurance Eurodrone.

• Air Warfare

  Spanish NH90 helicopters to receive engine capable of flying with sustainable fuel

  18th May 2023

  The milestone marks an important step towards standardising SAF use in aircraft engines, contributing to short-term decarbonisation goals.

• Training

  CAE wins US Air Force helicopter introductory training contract

  13th June 2023

  CAE has been awarded the USAF Rotary Wing Introductory Flight Training (IFT-R) contract to support Air Education and Training Command (AETC).

• Naval Warfare

  DSEI 2023: Has the Royal Navy cut back its support vessel fleet too far?

  11th September 2023

  This second in Shephard’s three-part series examining the state of the UK RN analyses the fleet of support ships. These important vessels sustain naval forces at sea for long durations and at vast distances, but cuts to the Royal Fleet Auxiliary's fleet have left crucial ships retired or sold, prompting concerns for future missions.

• Air Warfare

  City-wide imaging sensor flies on US drone

  14th June 2023

  Logos Technologies, a subsidiary of Elbit Systems of America, has seen its BlackKite IR wide-area motion imagery (WAMI) pod flown on a US Army UAS for the first time.

• Defence Helicopter

  Paris Air Show: Bell to deliver virtual cockpit and prototype aircraft for US Army's FLRAA

  23rd June 2023

  With the protest procedure concluded for the US Army's Future Long-Range Assault Aircraft competition, Bell and the service have resumed work, focussing on the success of the programme.

• Air Warfare

  Paris Air Show: Turgis & Gaillard debut new UAV – the Aarok

  19th June 2023

  At Paris Air Show, France’s Turgis & Gaillard showcased a new UAV, the Aarok, which it says will make its first flight before the end of the year.

Programme Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  H225M - France

  Programme Background In April 2021, the French government signed a deal for the purchase of eight H225M Airbus helicopters to replace its ageing fleet of SA330 ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M [Ireland]

  Programme Background On 30 December 2024 Ireland announced a contract with Airbus for four new H145M helicopters to replace the Air Corps existing fleet of ...

• Military helicopters - light/training

  TH-73 Advanced Helicopter Training System - AHTS (TH-57 Replacement)

  Contenders for the competition included the Leonardo single engine TH-119 – a military variant of the AW119Kx – and Bell’s newly upgraded single engine 407GXi. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145 Helicopter [Honduras]

  Programme Background  The Honduran Government has purchased a total of four H145 Helicopters manufactured by Airbus to develop the armed forces preparedness against natural disasters ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Maritime Operations Helicopters

  The three maritime operations helicopters will be used for logistics and personnel transport, alongside transportation of PASKAL naval special forces in operations in the area. ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Bell 412EPI-Indonesia

  Programme Background PTDI is assembling Bell helicopters in its factory in Bandung.  The first Bell 412EPI was delivered to Indonesian Army on 29 December 2020 ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Kondor Naval Helicopters (Poland)

  Programme Background In 2018, the Polish MoD announced its requirement to purchase up to eight naval helicopters to replace in-service SH-2G Super Seasprite helicopters. Polish ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  Spain HT-29 Caiman (NH90 TTH) - Army First Batch

  HT-29 Caiman GSPAs (NH90 TTH) will be assembled at Airbus Helicopters’ facility in Albacete and will replace AS332 Super Puma fleet in service. Even though ...

• Military helicopters - transport/heavy lift

  AW101 [Poland]

  According to the media reports, Airbus couldn't provide a competitive offer for the programme due to the offset requirements.  The deliveries were to be completed ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  AH-X [Japan]

  There is no mention of the AH-X in the 2019-2023 Medium Term Defence Plan, so it is possible that the requirement has quietly been postponed. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H135 (UK)

  Programme BackgroundAirbus Helicopters UK announced on 2 February 2022 that it has won an order to provide five additional H135 twin-engine helicopters for the MoD. The ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  Ka-226T-India-Air Force

  An official contract announcement is expected during the Aero India 2021 exhibition in Bangalore, although negotiations have dragged on for more than five years and ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M (Contracted) [Germany]

  Programme Background Previous Usage The German Armed Forces ordered 15 H145M helicopters, with the initial two delivered in December 2015, for the Kommando Spezialkräfte. These ...

• Military helicopters - maritime

  Naval Utility Helicopters (India)

  Programme Background The program will witness the formation of a joint venture between Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) and another local or foreign manufacturer. In June ...

• Military helicopters - attack

  Light Armed Helicopter (LAH) First Batch (South Korea)

  Programme Background The LAH is the first time that the South Korean OEM has developed an armed helicopter. The project kicked off in June 2015, ...

Equipment Results - Defence Insight

• Military helicopters - light/training, Military helicopters - multirole

  H135M

  The H135M (formerly known as the EC635 and also designated as H135) is a light utility variant of the EC135 twin-engine, multipurpose 3t helicopter. In ...

• Model 301 Fire Attack

  The Model 301 is a belly tank/refill hose system for Airbus Helicopters AS365-series helicopters.

• Model 316 Fire Attack

  The Model 316 is a belly tank/refill hose system for Airbus Helicopters H225 and AS332 L-series helicopters.

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H145M

  The H145M (formerly known as the EC645 T2) is the military version of the H145 medium-sized (3.7t) helicopter. It is marketed as a multi-role platform ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H175M

  The Airbus H175M is the military variant of the H175, a seven-tonne class aircraft powered by twin PT6C 67E engines. The civilian variants produced by Airbus ...

• Air: mission management systems

  Helionix

  The Helionix digital avionics suite was developed from the need for a more powerful avionics system with greater functions and computing capacity, alongside a user-friendly interface. ...

• Military helicopters - multirole

  H215M

  The H215M (formerly the AS532 ALe) is the most recent addition to the Cougar family.  It is a medium-weight (9t-class), twin-engine helicopter, combining the AS532's ...

• Helicopter engines

  Arriel 2+/2D

  Unveiled in 2011, the Arriel 2+ is an upgrade of the Arriel 2 and is intended for single- and twin-engine helicopters. It incorporates a new ...

• AC67 Airbus Helicopters H135 interior

  Bucher has developed the AC67 medical interior for the Airbus Helicopters H135 in cooperation with ADAC Luftrettung.The lightweight, modular design features a floor with integrated ...

• Helicopter engines

  LTS101

  The LTS101 was first certified in 1975. Since then, over 2,100 engines have been delivered to customers worldwide, logging over 11 million service hours. The ...

• EO/IR systems

  Viviane

  Viviane is an out-of-production gyro-stabilised night and adverse weather observation system with missile sight.  Manufactured by Safran, it was fitted to French Army Gazelles. It contained a ...

• Air: mission management systems

  APM 2000

  The current generation of autopilots is the APM 2000 family, fitted on major worldwide platforms. The APM 2000 is based on an integrated digital computer. ...

• Air: Defensive Systems - Radar Warning Receivers

  EWR-99

  Dassault is not traditionally associated with electronic warfare subsystems, instead being equated with the manufacture of combat aircraft and business jets. Nonetheless, the company did, ...

• Military helicopters - scout/light attack

  H125M

  The H125M (formerly the AS550 B3e Fennec) is a military version of the civil H125. The helicopter has a reduced radar signature due to the use ...

• H160

  Airbus Helicopters unveiled a full-scale model of the H160 medium twin rotorcraft on 3 March 2015 at Heli-Expo. The utility helicopter, the first to be ...